Parental protection in Euskelosaurus

[bh480@scn.org]

From: Ben Creisler bh480@scn.org
Don't recall if this article has been mentioned here: 
Durand, J. F., 2001. The oldest juvenile dinosaurs from 
Africa. Journal of African Earth Sciences 33 (3-4): 597-603

Abstract:
Recently discovered juvenile dinosaur remains from the 
Lower Elliot Formation (Upper Triassic) of South Africa 
can be assigned to Euskelosaurus browni (Huxley), an early 
prosauropod dinosaur. The oldest known juvenile 
prosauropods, before this discovery, were those from the 
Upper Triassic of Patagonia in Argentina. Although a 
satisfactory age correlation between the Lower Elliot 
Formation of the Karoo Supergroup of South Africa and the 
El Tranquilo Formation of Argentina has not been done yet, 
the South African juvenile dinosaurs remain the oldest 
reported from Africa. This latest discovery contributes to 
the understanding of the development and reproductive 
behaviour of early dinosaurs. 
.....
Conclusion:
The number of bones in the bone bed and the size 
discrepancy between adult and juvenile Euskelosaurus in 
the Northern Province mudstones examined here would 
suggest that breeding herds consisting of mothers, 
accompanied by their offspring, were killed by flash 
floods. The sizes of the juveniles varied between 583 and 
1250 mm in length. This, together with the state of 
ossification, indicates that precocious juveniles could 
forage with their mothers. Euskelosaurus eggs probably 
hatched during spring and juveniles accompanied adult 
maternal herds during the summer months. The riverbanks 
would have provided easily accessible food and water for 
the young, but this in turn made these brood herds 
susceptible to summer floods. The maternal behaviour of 
prosauropods was probably like that of crocodiles and 
birds with precocious young. The proximity of these adults 
provides protection for the young ¯ but the adults neither 
raise the young in nests nor do they feed the young.